Vanwall prepares for return to Hypercar Racing

VANWALL is ramping up preparation for the teams return to racing in 2026 with a comprehensive test and endurance proving program with the VANWALL 680 Hypercar.

VANWALL plans to contest the 2026 Asian Le Mans Series (ALMS) when that series adds a Hypercar class to the existing ALMS format. The FIA World Endurance Championship committee with the support of the ACO (the Le Mans organizer), has expanded the ALMS series at the request of a number of Hypercar manufacturers to encourage privateer customer teams to join the ALMS series.

The series will be fought out over six races in December 2026 and January 2027.

The VANWALL team’s initial Hypercar foray in the 2023 World Endurance Championship with the dedicated VANWALL 680 Hypercar design laid the foundation and direction to develop the design project further over the intervening two years.

“The careful performance analysis from our initial WEC campaign clearly identified important areas to improve” said VANWALL Principal Colin Kolles, “I am confident the actions taken following the technical review and the latest modifications incorporated will bring significant on-track improvement”.

The VANWALL 680’s powertrain architecture has been extensively revised with great attention focused on air intake environment and airflow volume, optimized radiator and intercooler performance, and exhaust gas flow efficiency to complement the increased engine performance.

For VANWALL, the ALMS is the opportunity to demonstrate the VANWALL 680’s progress since the team’s last appearance in the Bahrain WEC event.

VANWALL Principal Colin Kolles said, “We have had very constructive discussions with the WEC and ACO regarding rejoining the WEC in 2027 but as always participation is dependent on the team being invited to compete. Our support for the new 2026 ALMS Hypercar category is a clear statement of our intent and commitment to the future.”

The 2026/2027 Asian Le Mans Series Hypercar program includes events at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, the Dubai Autodrome and the YAS Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi.